Reaction performances of hydrogen generated from aqueous-phase reforming (APR) of methanol or ethanol were investigated in hydrogenation of phenol, o-cresol and p-tert-butylphenol, over a Raney Ni or Pd/Al2O3 catalyst, respectively. The properties of the adsorbed hydrogen from aqueous-methanol/-ethanol, and H-2-gas were studied by means of temperature-programmed surface reaction in liquid phase and temperature-programmed desorption. The results shown that the selectivities of cyclohexanone are 20.5% and 96.1%, 27.4% and 92.4%, and 12.6% and 71.1% in the hydrogenation of phenol with hydrogen from APR. of methanol, APR of ethanol, and H-2-gas over the Raney Ni and Pd/Al2O3 catalyst, respectively. The limited amount of adsorbed hydrogen from the APR of methanol or ethanol favors the formation of cyclohexanone, but excessive amounts of adsorbed hydrogen from H-2-gas favors the formation of cyclohexanol in hydrogenation of phenol.